Red squirrel spotting tips

Red squirrel sitting on a mossy rock eating a nut — Red squirrel | © National Trust Images / Jim Bebbington

The red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) is one of our most popular and well-loved mammals. Find out where they live, the best times to see them and how to spot them.

Our top five squirrel-spotting tips

Look up as they live in the trees
They are easier to spot in the morning and late afternoon
Listen for rustling in the treetops
Falling pine cone seeds means a squirrel is munching above you
Stand still and be very quiet as soon as you spot one.

How to spot a red squirrel

It’s all about finding the right place and keeping very quiet. They are shy creatures and will run away if they hear you coming.

When to spot a red squirrel

Best time of year

Red squirrels are most active in spring and autumn, and these are the best seasons to spot them. In spring, squirrels are out and about feeding on emerging foliage and flowers. In autumn, they're busy building up their winter stores and can be seen scuttling about on the woodland floor.

Best time of day

Squirrels will generally be seen during the quieter times of the day, so a good time to see them is first thing or later in the afternoon. Even better, at Brownsea Island in Dorset you can stay overnight on the campsite and go red squirrel spotting after all the other visitors have gone home.

A small furry squirrel with a long bushy tail and tufted ears is climbing a tall straight trunk of a conifer tree — Red squirrel foraging in protected woodland at Formby, Liverpool | © National Trust Images/Gary Bailey

Appearance

Red squirrels are not always red. They vary in colour and can be brown, greyish or nearly black. They can also have white hairs in their coats and tails, or be bleached blonde by the sun. It's still fairly easy to tell them apart from grey squirrels because red squirrels are smaller, have a more pointed face and have distinctive ear tufts that are particularly noticeable from September as they grow their winter coat.

Habitat

Red squirrels prefer mixed broad-leaf and conifer woodland. They live mostly in trees, but can sometimes be seen on the ground.

Red squirrel facts

Diet

Squirrels feed on tree seeds, buds, bark, fungi and occasionally small birds and their eggs. They prefer pinecones to acorns; a gnawed pinecone is a sure sign of squirrels. In autumn, they bury food for a supply in winter. They try to put on extra weight for the winter, but must also stay athletic enough to leap between trees.

Home, sweet home

A red squirrel's 'nest' is called a drey. Dreys are built high up in trees, close to the trunk. They're made from twigs on the outside and lined with moss, wool, feathers and leaves. Each squirrel will build several dreys for resting and breeding. Squirrels don't hibernate, but they are less active in winter – in very bad weather, they tend to stay in their dreys.

Family life

Red squirrels typically live four to five years. Female squirrels start to breed when they're less than a year old and have three or four young each time. They have up to two litters every year, usually in early spring and summer. Baby squirrels are called kittens – they're born pink and bald, with no teeth and their eyes closed. Like all baby mammals, they drink their mother's milk. They grow up fast – at seven weeks, they're red and fluffy, and ready to leave the drey.